October 2020 – E-cig users have higher chance of taking up smoking
A new report suggests vapers are three times more likely to pick up conventional smoking, compared to those who don’t use e-cigarettes, but pro-vapers say otherwise. Article by Emily Cosenza.
E-cigarette users are three times more likely to take up conventional smoking than those who don’t vape, a new report suggests.
The study led by The Australian National University, in collaboration with University of Melbourne researchers, also found ex-smokers using e-cigarettes were more than twice as likely to relapse.
University of Melbourne researcher Olivia Baenziger said the findings supported concerns that vaping was a gateway to smoking, especially among young people.
ANU lead researcher from Emily Banks said Australia led the world in tobacco control, with 11 per cent of adults smoking daily and about 97 per cent of 14 to 17-year-olds having never smoked.
“E-cigarettes could undermine a wonderful smoke-free start in life,” Professor Banks said.
“There are around 2.3 million smokers in Australia, and it is our number one cause of premature death and disability.
“Avoiding e-cigarettes in non-smokers is vital to keeping progress going against smoking.”
She said there was not enough evidence to suggest vaping helped people give up smoking compared to other approaches but there were “promising signs” they had the potential.
“Most people who give up smoking successfully don’t use any products like patches or medication to do it,” Prof Banks said.
“The evidence also indicates that e-cigarettes tend to lead to prolonged use of nicotine, rather than quitting the habit entirely.”
Global evidence on e-cigarettes and smoking behaviour was reviewed for the study, which was funded by the Australian Government’s Department of Health and is available online.
Under current guidelines from The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, e-cigarettes are listed as a last resort for quitting.
Cancer Council Australia’s director of cancer control policy Megan Varlow said the report highlighted the organisation’s concern that vapes were a dangerous on-ramp to smoking.
“Australia’s decline in smoking, particularly amongst youth, is great news for public health, but bad news for the tobacco industry, which needs a new generation of nicotine addicts to maintain and build profits,” she said.
“This report exposes the relentless false claims made by e-cigarette companies and retailers that e-cigarettes are a legitimate smoking cessation tool.”
However, Legalise Vaping Australia campaign director Brian Marlow said he did not believe the findings were accurate.
“This study was nothing more than a literature review, which fails to factor in actual data from the 2019 National Drug Strategy Household Survey,” he said.
“The researchers looked at over 2600 studies, however, they only selected 25 studies to generate a conclusion from … It’s also not peer reviewed.”
Mr Marlow said the survey would put people off vaping and any move that restricted or scared adults from accessing “potentially life saving vape products” would increase smoking rates.
“There are at least 65 scientific studies demonstrating that vaping products are less harmful than traditional cigarettes or are an effective way to quit for good.
“As per our survey – which we believe it is the largest survey of Australian vapers – 42 per cent of vapers say they would go back to smoking if the proposed TGA amendments on vaping were to be implemented.
“This report will only make things worse for people who have finally quit smoking yet are attacked every day by myopic anti-vaping groups and a stubborn Federal Health Minister.”
The Australia Tobacco Harm Reduction Association also hit back at the report.
Director Colin Mendelsohn said its support to quit smoking ‘cold turkey’ was hard to understand because it was the least effective method with a failure rate of 95-97 per cent.
“Many smokers will try repeatedly and quit unaided eventually, but often after smoking-related harm has developed over many years,” Dr Mendelsohn said.
“The best advice for smokers is to quit as soon as possible with the most effective method and vaping has proven worldwide to be one of them.”
Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt announced in June a delay on the ban on imported nicotine-based e-cigarettes until the beginning of 2021.
He said the ban was a measure to prevent non-smokers from becoming addicted to nicotine.
Under the rules, importing vaporiser nicotine and e-cigarettes would only be allowed with a doctor’s prescription and those caught flouting the ban could face a fine of up $222,000.
Please note that all articles and their opinions are the views of their relative author and are not representative of AcuQuit and/or its practitioners in any way.
